Apparatus for rapid development of photographic film



Ocf. 10, 1967 z; TAKATS ,9

APPARATUS FOR RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF PHOTOGRAPHIC FILM Filed June 26, 1964 v U LTRASON I C GE NERA TOR VOLTAGE FIG. I

IN VEN TOR 'ZOLTAN TAKATS ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,345,927 APPARATUS FOR RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF PHOTOGRAPHIC FILM Zoltan Takats, Vestal, N. assignor to General Allllllle & Film Corporation, New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed June 26, 1964, Ser. No. 378,313 3 Claims. (Cl. 95-89) developed so that the result may be inspected without delay. In all photographic applications it is, of course, 'desirable to process sensitized material as rapidly as possible. vfor economic reasons. United States Patent No.

3,081,687, issued Mar. 19, 1963, in the name of Zoltan veloping photographic film and can be adapted to utilize the improvements of the present invention.

It is a principal object of this inventoin to provide an apparatus which, while of extremely simple construction, will permit continuous, even development of a moving photographic film utilizing treating solutions which are constantly agitated at a high rate.

Another object is the provision of apparatus for treating moving photographic film wherein frictional resistance between said apparatus and said film is very greatly reduced.

Another object is the provision of apparatus for treating photographic film wherein deposition of dirt and other foreign material between said film and said apparatus is prevented. a

A further object is the provision of an apparatus for treating photographic film wherein deposition of chemicals from the treating solution is eliminated.

Other objects and features will be apparent from the following detailed description of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view in cross-section of the novel apparatus illustrated in schematic form; and

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

The present invention is based on the discovery that the utilization of ultrasonic vibration to the rubber trough containing treating solution which is in contact with moving photographic film not only causes increased or super agitation of the treating solution resulting in faster processing rates and improved negative or positive acuity because of faster solution penetration time, but also presents the contact areas between the film and the applicator lips of the trough in a dynamic state of action thereby very greatly reducing the frictional resistance between said lips and said film and greatly reducing power requirements and producing much smoother film motion. In addition, the application of ultrasonic vibartions to the applicator lips prevents the entry of dirt and other foreign material into the solution chamber within the trough and prevents deposition on the applicator lips. As a consequence, the film is clean when it enters the solution chamber within the trough. It was also discovered that the use of ultrasonic vibrations applied to the rubber trough and applicator lips prevents the precipitation of chemicals from the treating solution during long runs and prevents coating of the bottom, sides or other areas of the trough.

Referring to the drawing, it is seen that the apparatus comprises a rigid support 1 which may be mounted on a suitable base. The support 1 is formed with a chamber 2 in its lower part and an ultrasonic transducer 3 is disposed 3,345,927 Patented Oct. 10, 1967 within said chamber. The support is additionally formed with a longitudinal channel 4 in which is imbedded an insert 5 made of a resilient material, such as plastic or rubber. In practice, rubber has proved to be particularly useful for this purpose. The insert 5 is formed with one or more troughs 6, 6A, 63 having vertically extending edges or lips 7 and 8. The film 9 travels transversely over the insert 5.

The film may be moved in any suitable manner across the troughs 6, 6A and 6B, for example, between a pair of rollers 10 and 11 shown in FIG. 2, the roller 11 being driven by a suitable motor 12.

The rigid support 1 is preferably made of stainless steel or similar material and can be formed with cavities and other passages which would permit circulation of liquid in the body of said support and. in said troughs so as to I maintain it at a certain temperature. In a convenient em- .Takats, describes and claims apparatus for rapidly debodiment, the treating solution used for development of the film circulating through the troughs 6, 6A and 6B is also employed for conveying heat to or from the support 1 and/ or troughs 6, 6A and 6B.

The transducer 3 is any or" the well-known types including natural piezoelectric material, e.g., lead zirconate titanate, magnetostrictive material, polarized electrostrictive material, e.g., barium titanate, or any other material which will transform electrical energy into ultrasonic waves. Excitation is applied to transducer 3 from an ultrasonic generator 13 suitably connected thereto. The transducer 3 can be attached internally to the support 1 or it may be attached externally thereto or it may be attached internally or externally to the rubber insert 5 itself.

In operation, the troughs 6, 6A, 6B are filled with a suitable treating solution, e.g., developing solution, clearing solution, rinsing solution, etc. The solutions in each of the troughs 6, 6A and 6B can be the same or different, as desired, and the solutions can be of the type used for producing completed negatives, completed positive film transparencies, or paper prints.

Circulation of the solutions within the troughs 6, 6A and 63 can be started in the conventional manner and the film 9 is passed across said troughs, firmly contacting the lips 7, 8 whereby the areas of each of the troughs 6, 6A and 6B are completely sealed by the film. The solutions in said troughs contact the emulsion side of film 9 and development takes place as said film is moved. It is to be understood that the speed of film travel may be regulated by the motor 12, by suitable gearings or electrical controls, not shown here, so that sufficient time is assured for the treating solution to be absorbed by the emulsion for proper treatment. The intimate contact between the lips 7 and 8 and the emulsion side of the film acts as a squeegee to remove all excess treating solution from the surface of the film 9.

The ultrasonic transducer 3 is excited by the ultrasonic generator 13 while the film 9 is passed over the troughs 6, 6A and 6B. By this means the support 1 is ultrasonically vibrated thereby vibrating rubber insert 5 and also lips 7, 8. Although the rubber insert to some extent cushions and lessens the vibrations transmitted through. it, the lips 7, 8 vibrate at a high rate thereby greatly reducing the frictional resistance between said lips and the film 9 to greatly reduce power requirements and greatly assist in providing smoother film motion. In addition, the vibrating lips 7, 8 prevent the introduction of dirt or other foreign material adhering to the film 9 into the troughs 6, 6A and 6B and also prevent any deposition of said dirt or other foreign material on the lip areas. The insert 5 being vibrated ultrasonically prevents precipitation of treating solution onto the bottom, sides or other surfaces of the troughs 6, 6A and 6B or other chan nels or chambers in the insert 5 or the support 1.

It should be understood that all types of photographic material such as roll film, cut film, strip film, plates, paper or other embodiments may be processed using the teachings of my invention and that the illustration and description of the processing of a particular type of material in the above description is by way of example and not by way of limitation and I do not wish to be limited to the specific examples and embodiments shown and described, for obvious modifications will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus for applying liquid to a moving photographic film or the like utilizing a trough of resilient material for containing said liquid, said trough having vertically extending lips adapted to contact and remove excess liquid from said film and seal the area overlying said trough, that improvement comprising means for applying ultrasonic agitation to said lips of said trough thereby to prevent deposition of dirt on said lips and simultaneously reduce the frictional resistance between said moving film and said lips.

2. An apparatus for applying liquid to a moving photographic film or the like, comprising, a trough for containing said liquid, said trough having vertically extending lips adapted to contact and remove excess liquid from said film and seal the area overlying said trough, and means for applying ultrasonic vibration to said lips of said trough thereby to prevent deposition of dirt on said .4 lips and simultaneously reduce the frictional resistance between said moving film and said lips.

3. An apparatus for applying liquid to a moving photographic film or the like, comprising, a solid support having an insert of resilient material, said insert having walls defining a trough for containing said liquid, said trough having vertically extending lips adapted to contact and remove excess liquid from said film and seal the area overlying said trough, and means for applying ultrasonic vibration to said solid support whereby the vibrating lips prevent deposition of dirt and foreign materials thereon and simultaneously reduce the frictional resistance between said moving film and said lips.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,734,975 11/ 1929 Loornis. 2,738,173 3/1956 Massa. 2,746,813 5/1956 Massa. 2,875,989 3/1959 Toulmin. 3,081,687 3/1963 Takats 9589 3,123,084 3/ 1964 Tardoskegyi. 3,149,550 9/1964 Lohse 9589 2,588,218 3/1952 Dippel et a1. 2,740,202 4/1956 Fowle 15-94 X NORTON ANS-HER, Primary Examiner.

CLIFFORD B. PRICE, Examiner. J. F. PETERS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN AN APPARATUS FOR APPLYING LIQUID TO A MOVING PHOTOGRAPHIC FILM OR THE LIKE UTILIZING A TROUGH OF RESILIENT MATERIAL FOR CONTAINING SAID LIQUID, SAID TROUGH HAVING VERTICALLY EXTENDING LIPS ADAPTED TO CONTACT AND REMOVE EXCESS LIQUID FROM SAID FILM AND SEAL THE AREA OVERLYING SAID TROUGH, THAT IMPROVEMENT COMPRISING MEANS FOR AP PLYING ULTRASONIC AGITATION TO SAID LIPS OF SAID TROUGH THEREBY TO PREVENT DEPOSITION OF DIRT ON SAID LIPS AND SIMULTANEOUSLY REDUCE THE FRICTIONAL RESISTANCE BETWEEN SAID MOVING FILM AND SAID LIPS. 